Western suburbs taste great

An A1 arrival in Werribee

A1 Bakery, 2/70 Watton Street, Werribee. Phone: 8714 1592

What good news this is – a branch of A1 Bakery in Werribee, a sister joint for the Lebanese shops in Sydney Road and Dandenong.

Yippee!

They’ve been open a week when I arrive, hungry, for lunch.

I’m expecting the big space and in-depth grocery range of the Brunswick establishment.

So I’m surprised to find instead a smallish but cheerful cafe, with only a minimal range of groceries.

There is a heap to eat, though.

There’s a range of 15 super-cheap pies and piazzas.

Plain zaatar goes for $2, zaatar with vegetables is $4 and a spinach and cheese parcel will cost you $4.50.

There’s wraps and salads.

And, best of all, there’s a range of platters – falafel, tawouk (chicken), labne, kibbe, “kafta” and the like.

They range in price from $6 up to $10 and all come with a varied line-up of pickles, yogurt, salad, chips, salad and pita.

As listed, my $8 kofta deal is served without pickles, so I get them added for an extra $1. I’m pretty sure the cheerful and obliging staff will allow customers to customise their platter choices in terms of accompaniments.

My lunch is terrific.

The three kofta sausages, in particular, are wonderful – fat, juicy, mildly seasoned and pinkish in the middle.

The pies and pizzas I see being consumed around me look very much the goods, too!

Post navigation

12 thoughts on “An A1 arrival in Werribee”

I watched excitedly when I saw the A1 Bakery sign with coming soon and finally it opened and it’s exactly like Sydney Road but the staff are friendlier at Werribee. I’ve purchased lots of goodies and have spread the word to all my friends around the area

The Brunswick shop closer to you than the Werribee one? Dunno about that! You may be right in terms of simple distance. But there’s a lot fewer traffic light between you and Werribee than between you and Sydney Road – and the parking is a breeze if you know where to go!

I’ve had Lebanese pizzas from both of the other A1s, and while they’re not bad, I think they’re a trifle overrated. Any time a non-ritzy place plasters its walls with all sorts of news clippings about itself and gilt-plated awards, it makes them seem full of themselves, IMHO. A1’s quality is OK, but not “Wow!” Their prices for pizzas are 50¢ to $1 more than what other Middle Eastern bakeries charge. That’s a large percentage difference when you’re dealing with foods in the $5 range.

In Brunswick, I give my repeat business to a joint called Al Waha that’s way out on the 800 block of Sydney Road, by a tram driver depot. I don’t just like it because of the funny name — they’re cheap and the sujuk is extra-spicy the way I prefer it. I miss the Phoenician grocery/bakery that used to operate across from Balha’s. I wonder why it went out of business? My favourite is still Al Nada in Spotswood, partly because it was the first Lebbo pizza I ever ate, but also because of the daft bloke who runs it. He’s like some of my patients in the psych ward, only he’s functional in society.